Category: Auto Industry

Video: Watch 1,208 Porsche 911s collect at Silverstone for world record

Filed under: Videos, Porsche, UK

Porsche 911 parade lapping Silverstone Grand Prix circuit

Porsche has been spending the majority of 2013 celebrating the 50th birthday of the 911, with its latest stunt taking the German brand to the home of British motorsports, Silverstone. To celebrate, Porsche invited enthusiasts to take their personal 911s on a lap of the former airfield, and boy, did the Porschephiles show up. 1,208 911s took part in the lap around the Grand Prix circuit, making it the largest-ever gathering of the iconic, rear-engined cars.

This wasn’t just a celebration of 50 years for the 911, though. Funds raised were channeled towards Hope For Tomorrow, a cancer charity that works with the United Kingdom’s National Health Service in operating mobile chemothereapy units that make life just a little bit easier on cancer patients.

Take a look at the long video below, and enjoy the passing of what are likely examples of every 911 model ever built.

Continue reading Watch 1,208 Porsche 911s collect at Silverstone for world record

Watch 1,208 Porsche 911s collect at Silverstone for world record originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 19:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: NADA angers some by choosing Hillary Clinton as convention keynote speaker

Filed under: Car Buying, Government/Legal

Automotive News is reporting a serious backlash from car dealers regarding the North American Dealers Association’s choice of keynote speaker for the annual industry confab in January: former first lady and secretary of state, Hillary Clinton.

AN spoke to one dealer that not only cancelled his trip to the NADA conference, but revoked his dealership’s membership outright over the association with Clinton. In defense of its choice, NADA Chairman David Westcott argued that the dealer advocate wanted “somebody well-known, with a name – a draw.”

Still, NADA members aren’t pleased with the choice, with dealers delivering a barrage of angry messages since Clinton’s selection, according to Automotive News. Some of the angry messages relate to the former secretary of state’s politics, no doubt, but some might just be upset about the expense of such a big-name speaker – AN cited media reports that Clinton commands about $200,000 per speech.

NADA isn’t backing down, though, with its president, Peter Welch, delivering a level-headed response to AN’s inquiry about the choice: “Our job is to provide our members with exposure to all facets of business and government that can affect their dealerships. Like her or not, Senator Clinton is perhaps the most prominent woman of modern times.”

NADA angers some by choosing Hillary Clinton as convention keynote speaker originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 19:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Read This: Toyota recounts past Supra glories

Filed under: Classics, Coupe, Toyota

It could just be a slow start to the news week around the Toyota offices, but its UK blog has posted a brief history on its legendary Supra sports car. Read into however you’d like, but there has been plenty of speculation as to the return of the Supra nameplate in recent years (including last month from incoming Toyota chairman Takeshi Uchiyamada).

Built from April 1978 through July 2002, Toyota’s sports coupe made quite a name for itself as both the Celica Supra (shown above) and the Supra, and the blog post charts many of the changes and highlights through the years. Head on over to the Toyota UK blog to read more about this Supra’s history, and then be sure to check out the gallery of images from Toyota spanning all four generations.

Toyota recounts past Supra glories originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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CarmaRace board game seeks funding on Kickstarter

Carmarace box coverAutomotive geekery isn’t just limited to internet forums, dingy garages, or coffee shop parking lots. It extends far beyond that, actually. Board games – and we’re talking the complex ones with rulebooks longer than The Grapes Of Wrath, not Chutes and Ladders – are actually a fairly popular outlet for auto enthusiasts. Take the wildly addicting Formula D, for example.

The problem with board games is that they are often too long and complex to be played on a whim. CarmaRace aims to change that, by delivering a game that is both easy to learn and difficult to master, making it a bit like Risk. Unlike Risk, though, this game is all about getting from point A to point B as quickly as possible.

Players will need to hitchhike across the continent, be it on a plane, train, or by car. Each mode of transport has a card, while players can collect bonuses for future use, or obstacles to slow down an opponent. The strong social element can force players to make and break alliances at the drop of the hat, which is one of the things that’s so darn entertaining about these types of games.

Normally, we wouldn’t be quite so keen on a board game, but it comes from one of the producers for the online board game review show (yes, there is such a thing) Board to Death TV. That gives this game just a bit more credibility than one made by a big corporation. It’s sort of like what you’d get if you bought a car designed by the Autoblog team. Take a look at CarmaRace’s Kickstarter, which has 26 days to go and is already one-third of the way to its goal.

CarmaRace board game seeks funding on Kickstarter originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 18:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Indian Grand Prix in jeopardy?

Filed under: Motorsports, Government/Legal, India

2011 Indian Grand Prix first corner

BBC Sport is reporting that Bernie Ecclestone, Formula One boss and indicted briber, has said the Indian Grand Prix will “probably not” happen in 2014. The race, which takes place at the purpose-built Buddh International Circuit, is in danger due to a combination of reasons, including Ecclestone’s desire to move India from its current slot in October to the beginning of the season, in March or April.

According to the BBC, this is to accommodate a schedule envisioned by Ecclestone that adds races in Austria, New Jersey and Russia, in addition to the current 19-race calendar. Why the shuffle, though? The teams aren’t too excited about a longer season, and Ecclestone is hoping that by moving India to the start of the season, with China, Malaysia and the season opener in Australia, he can knock out four of the seven Asia-Pacific-region races in one fell swoop.

This poses a problem for India, though, as it’d be forced to run a race in October of 2014 and then do the whole thing over again in six or seven months. According to the head of India’s motorsports federation, Vicky Chandhok, that doesn’t give the country enough recovery time, with Chandhok going so far as to say the early season date “would be impossible for us in terms of finances and resources.”

There’s also a dustup over India’s import tax, that could hamper this year’s race. The Indian government is attempting to tax teams on their Indian earnings rather than on their profits, which would result in teams having to paying considerably more in taxes.

2013 marks only the third F1 race at the Buddh Circuit. But if Bernie doesn’t get his way, and the tax issues aren’t sorted, the track could go the way of Turkey’s Istanbul Park, another circuit built solely to attract F1, that lasted a mere six seasons before being dropped from the calendar.

Indian Grand Prix in jeopardy? originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 17:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Submit your questions for Autoblog Podcast #343 LIVE!

Filed under: Etc.

Autoblog podcast graphic

We’re set to record Autoblog Podcast #343 tonight, joined by George Kennedy, Autoblog alumnus and editor of Boldride.com. You can drop us your questions and comments via our Q&A module below. Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes if you haven’t already done so, and if you want to take it all in live, tune in to our UStream (audio only) channel at 10:00 PM Eastern tonight.

Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #343

  • BMW i3 debut
  • NACTOY long list
  • Bentley SUV is a go

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Submit your questions for Autoblog Podcast #343 LIVE! originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 17:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Auctions: Shelby Cobra, Mercedes 300SL and 1947 Woodie from Petersen Museum headed to auction

Filed under: Classics, Convertible, Performance, Wagon, Auctions, Ford, Ferrari, Luxury

The changes happening at the Petersen Museum have been making the rounds in major press, but it probably won’t be until August 18, during Pebble Beach, when we get the full story on what’s happening; that’s where and when museum reps plan on announcing the way forward for the SoCal institution. In the meantime, the museum is still reorganizing its collection, and that means auctioning some of its showpieces at this weekend’s Auctions America event in Burbank.

Three of the stars are a 1964 Shelby Cobra 289, one of less than 20 produced with a three-speed C-4 automatic transmission, a 1960 Mercedes-Benz 300SL owned by actor Robert Stack and the last 1948 Ford Sportsman ‘Woodie’ ever produced. The Cobra, now restored to its original white exterior and red leather interior, was a factory demonstrator that first sold for $5,250. Showing just 38,950 miles on the odometer, its pre-sale estimate is $800,000 to $1 million.

The 300SL is actually a 1957 model but wasn’t titled until Robert Stack took possession in 1960. The lead actor in the The Untouchables TV series used to drive by the Sunset Boulevard Mercedes dealership to ogle the car, but couldn’t justify spending the money to buy it. When he and the producer of The Untouchables won Emmys for the show, the producer, who happened to be Desi Arnaz, bought the car for Stack. He owned it his whole life, it has been left as Stack drove it and still bears the California license plate “UNTCHBL.”

The 100-horsepower 1947 Woodie is considered to be the last Sportsman ever built, one of just 28 examples produced that year. It’s been thoroughly restored and returned to its Maize Yellow hue, with the original Birdseye Maple along its flanks and gray cardboard lining in its trunk.

They will go up on the plinth with rarities like a Jaguar XJ220, 1974 Mercedes-Benz 600 LWB Pullman Limousine and 1971 Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona. You can read about the cars and the auction in the press releases below.

Continue reading Shelby Cobra, Mercedes 300SL and 1947 Woodie from Petersen Museum headed to auction

Shelby Cobra, Mercedes 300SL and 1947 Woodie from Petersen Museum headed to auction originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 17:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: McLaren’s origin story gets the Tooned treatment

Filed under: Motorsports, Marketing/Advertising, Videos, McLaren

Second episode of Tooned features McLaren origin story.

British television network Sky has aired the second episode of Tooned, and this time, the digitally animated cartoon follows the story of McLaren founder Bruce McLaren and his early life in New Zealand. McLaren drivers, who were the focus of the first episode, take a back seat on this one.

The fable shows a young McLaren attempting to build his car to go 100 miles per hour through trial, error and fierce determination, knowing that he’d hit a few bumps along the road before he could become successful. His first race was in a modified Austin Seven that his father built, however, which is animated into the cartoon in the form of an old, red car.

Check out the video of McLaren’s child-friendly Formula One promo below. Parents, consider this a good time to introduce your children to the world of motorsports.

Continue reading McLaren’s origin story gets the Tooned treatment

McLaren’s origin story gets the Tooned treatment originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rumormill: Range Rover Sport and Evoque rumored to get RS versions

Filed under: Performance, SUV, Land Rover, Rumormill, Luxury, Off-Road

2014 Land Rover Range Rover Sport

A report in Autocar claims that Jaguar’s RS badge and its herd of extra horsepower is walking across the aisle to the Land Rover stable. Autocar sources say the Range Rover Sport and Evoque will get RS designations, the supercharged V8 in the Sport RS getting cranked up to “at least” 542 horsepower, the 2.0-liter EcoBoost in the Evoque RS getting 300.

The magazine has spy shots of an extra potent Sport testing at the Nürburgring, slight changes to the lower parts of the SUV giving it away as a ringer. Supposedly, with the same horsepower (or more) than the RS cars in the Jaguar fold, Land Rover wants it to get from 0-60 miles per hour in 4.5 seconds; that would make it just 0.1 second shy of the same run in a Jaguar XJR. The Evoque RS is said to be arriving first, perhaps this year, with the Range Rover Sport RS coming next year.

Range Rover Sport and Evoque rumored to get RS versions originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 16:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: GM execs fired over fraudulent India emissions testing

Filed under: SUV, Recalls, Chevrolet, GM, India

Chevy Tavera Neo3 - front three-quarter view

General Motors hadn’t had a recall in India since 1995. That changed when it was discovered that certain employees were playing tricks with local emissions testing in order to ensure passing grades for engines. More than ten GM Powertrain employees in India and the US have been let go over the ensuing emissions flap, including Sam Winegarden, VP of global engine engineering, a man who has been with the company since 1969, leading development of some marquee powerplants.

According to Automotive News, an internal investigation revealed that employees “violated testing procedures,” sometimes swapping specially prepared low-emissions engines during testing regimes for the Chevrolet Tavera SUV equipped with the 2.0-liter and 2.5-liter engines. Employees were also manipulating weights in order to get vehicles placed into different emissions categories. The discovery has led to GM recall the 114,000 Taveras produced over an eight-year period and halting their production and sale.

The Economic Times of India reports that the issue is due to “a faulty component.” GM has developed a solution to the issue, and once it is validated in testing and approved by the Indian authorities, the recalled vehicles will be fixed at dealers and production will resume.

GM execs fired over fraudulent India emissions testing originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 29 Jul 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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